Sunday, April 7, 2013

Australian billionaire Clive Palmer unveiled design plans for construction of Titanic II, a cruise ship designed as a "full-scale re-creation" of the Titanic, which sank in the Atlantic Ocean in April 1912 — reported USA Today.

Palmer, who didn't reveal the cost of the project, displayed a blueprint for the Titanic II at a press conference aboard the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum. He announced that the ship will be built in China and begin carrying passengers in the third quarter of 2016.

"The Titanic was a ship of dreams. And the Titanic II will be the ship where dreams come true," he added.

The Titanic II will be built 883 feet long – 3 inches longer than the original Titanic– and weigh 55,800 gross tons, according to Palmer. It will carry a maximum of 2,435 passengers and 900 crew members, and include a gymnasium, Turkish baths, a squash court, a swimming pool, a theater and a casino.

Its first voyage is scheduled to be from Shanghai to Southampton, England, and then on to New York.